7.  The facts of the case, as submitted by the applicant, may be summarised as follows.
8.  The applicant was born in 1950 and is a Turkish national, originating from the town of Nurhak. He arrived in Switzerland in June 1988.
9.  He claimed to have been detained and tortured by the Turkish authorities in 1987/88, prior to fleeing to Switzerland, because he was a member of a Turkish Communist Party (hereinafter the TCP). Together with his two older sons, who had also been politically active in the TCP, the applicant was considered a refugee and granted asylum in 1994 by the Federal Office for Migration (hereinafter the Federal Office).
10.  In 1995 the applicant received a residence permit issued by the Office for Migration of the Canton of Zurich. Following this, his wife and his other three children came to live in Switzerland.
11.  In 1990 the applicant was severely hurt at work and was subsequently granted an invalidity pension.
12.  His children and grandchildren are all Swiss nationals and the applicant remains in close contact with them. The applicant kept in contact with his family members in Turkey. At least two sisters are still living in Turkey. In one of the applicant’s submissions it appears that the applicant’s last remaining brother in Turkey has died while in a later submission it appears that one brother is still living there. The applicant has several nephews and nieces residing in Turkey and in the United Kingdom. The exact number is unknown. Some of them have even visited him in Switzerland.
13.  In 2001 the applicant killed his wife during a dispute. He shot her three times in the head and once in the stomach. In 2003 the applicant was sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment. During the proceedings a recurrent depressive disorder with psychotic symptoms was diagnosed, classified as schizophrenic disease syndrome. Due to his mental illness, a plea of diminished responsibility for the crime in question was accepted. Imprisonment was postponed, to allow him to benefit from treatment in a closed psychiatric facility.
14.  By decision of 3 March 2009 the Federal Office revoked the asylum status granted to the applicant because he had been sentenced for a serious crime. Nevertheless, the Federal Office did not withdraw the applicant’s status as a refugee under the 1951 Refugee Convention.
15.  In April 2010 the applicant was paroled on the condition that he remain in a facility with psychiatric care for the following three years. He was released from the closed ward and admitted to an open residence facility where continuous psychiatric care and supervision were provided. He suffered several relapses which led to temporary stays in a closed psychiatric hospital.
16.  Despite the psychiatric treatment the applicant had received, expert reports indicated that he was, and would remain, unable to live on his own. He would have to continue to take psychotropic drugs on a regular basis and undergo therapy, failing which he would suffer relapses into hallucinations and psychotic delusions during which he might harm himself or other persons. Expulsion would lead to a deterioration of his condition; even more so if he were expelled to Turkey, where he felt persecuted. He was unable to distinguish his paranoid ideas from reality. The applicant was also appointed a legal guardian.
17.  On 28 June 2010 the Migration Office of the Canton of Zurich revoked the applicant’s residence permit on the basis of the Federal Office’s decision and ordered the applicant to leave Switzerland within three months.
18.  The applicant appealed unsuccessfully to all instances against the decision to expel him. In an appeal to the Federal Supreme Court he claimed that he had not been adequately heard during the court proceedings. He claimed that adequate consideration had not been given to the fact that he continued to benefit from the principle of non-refoulement. If he were removed to Turkey, his mental health would further deteriorate, to such an extent that his life would be in danger. In addition, he would be at risk of being harmed by his wife’s relatives and being subjected to torture or inhuman treatment by the public authorities in Turkey. In the appeal to the Federal Supreme Court he also mentioned Article 8 of the Convention in a heading, but claimed neither directly nor in substance a violation of his right to respect for his private and family life.
19.  On 2 August 2012 the Federal Supreme Court refused the applicant’s appeal. It ruled that the applicant could be sent back to Turkey despite his recognition as a refugee under the 1951 Refugee Convention. It considered that he had been sentenced for a serious crime and concluded that it could not be established that, in the event of an expulsion, the applicant’s mental health would deteriorate to such an extent as to become life-threatening. There were psychiatric facilities in Turkey where the applicant could receive treatment.
20.  Regarding the risk of a blood feud with the relatives of the applicant’s wife in Turkey, the Federal Supreme Court noted that the applicant had failed to substantiate his claim that the Turkish authorities would not be able to protect him from such acts. Moreover, he could relocate within Turkey. Also, after the applicant’s wife’s death, her relatives had been to Switzerland without there being any reported behaviour that could lead to the assumption that a serious danger for the applicant existed. They had simply avoided him.
21.  With respect to the risk of being tortured for having been a member of the TCP, the Federal Supreme Court noted that the applicant’s political activities dated back more than 20 years, and the human rights situation in Turkey had changed significantly since then. The applicant’s wife and several of the applicant’s children had already renounced their refugee status and travelled back to Turkey for visits. They had not reported any difficulties when entering and staying in Turkey, despite the political activities of family members in the past.
22.  On 21 August 2012 the Migration Office of the Canton of Zurich informed the applicant that he had to leave Switzerland by 30 November 2012. On 10 December 2012 this time-limit was extended until 31 January 2013.
23.  By decision of 2 July 2013 the District Court of Zurich prolonged the applicant’s probation regarding his criminal conviction until 1 July 2016 and ordered that, owing to the applicant’s need for medical treatment, he continue to receive treatment in an institution providing psychiatric care until that date.
24.  So far, no date for the removal of the applicant to Turkey has been set but the order of the Migration Office to leave the country remains in force.